“The failure to integrate indigenous knowledge into the Western educational system adopted in Liberia denies Liberians a potentially expansive knowledge base for solving problems. Indigenous methods of child rearing and socialization, for example, are not sufficiently informing academic studies and training programs relevant to nurturing children; nor has the study of indigenous institutions of governance been incorporated into the study of political science or public administration. As a result, the impact of indigenous patterns of authority relations on the nurturing of children as citizens is hardly ever considered as part of the intellectual inquiry of institutions of learning. The fact that the very concept of citizenship varies from ethnic community to ethnic community has implications for the conception of Liberian citizenship generally. These have not been fully explored. Thus, there is a compelling need to provide a more organized and systematic explanation of local knowledge and practices and to incorporate these into the framework of an appropriate educational and training program if the educational system of Liberia is to serve as an effective agent in nurturing citizens and generating knowledge to enhance development.”
Excerpt from “Beyond Plunder” by Dr. Amos C. Sawyer
Interim President of the Republic of Liberia